Srila Bhaktivinodha Thakura the author of the book Jaiva Dharma.
An excerpt from Chapter 16 Jaiva Dharma. Position of the Jiva in Tatatsha
“Innumerable jivas appear from Sri Baladeva Prabhu to serve Vrndavana-vihari Sri Krsna as His eternal associates in Goloka Vrndavana, and others appear from Sri Sankarsana to serve the Lord of Vaikuntha, Sri Narayana, in the spiritual sky. Eternally relishing rasa, engaged in the service of their worshipable Lord, they always remain fixed in their constitutional position.
They always strive to please Bhagavan, and are always attentive to Him. Having attained the strength of cit-sakti, they are always strong. They have no connection with the material energy. In fact, they do not know if there is a bewildering energy called maya or not. Since they reside in the spiritual world, maya is very far away from them and does not affect them
at all. Always absorbed in the bliss of serving their worshipable Lord, they are eternally liberated and are free from material happiness and distress. Their life is love alone, and they are not even conscious of misery, death or fear.
Lord Krishna Bhagavan
“There are also innumerable, atomic, conscious jivas who emanate as rays in Karanodakasayi Maha-Visnu’s glance upon His maya-sakti. Since these jivas are situated next to maya, they perceive her wonderful workings. Although they have all the qualities of the jivas that I have already described, because of their minute and marginal nature, they sometimes look to the spiritual world, and sometimes to the material world. In this marginal condition, the jiva is very weak because at that time he has not attained spiritual strength from the mercy of the object of his worship (seva-vastu).
Among these unlimited jivas, those who want to enjoy maya become engrossed in mundane sense gratification and enter the state of nitya-baddha. On the other hand, the jivas who perform cid-anusilanam of Bhagavan receive spiritual sakti (cid-bala) by His mercy, and enter the spiritual world. Baba! It is our great misfortune that we have forgotten our service to Sri Krsna, and have become bound in the shackles of maya. Only because we have forgotten our constitutional position, are we in this deplorable condition.”
Vrajanatha: Prabhu, I understand that this marginal position is situated in tatastha-svabhava, or junction, of the spiritual and material worlds. Why is it that some jivas go from there to the material world, while others go to the spiritual world?
Babaji: Krsna’s qualities are also present in the jivas, but only in a minute quantity. Krsna is supremely independent, so the desire to be independent is eternally present in the jivas as well. When the jiva uses his independence correctly, he remains disposed towards Krsna, but when he misuses it, he becomes vimukha (indifferent) to Him.
It is just this indifference that gives rise to the desire in the jiva’s heart to enjoy maya. Because of the desire to enjoy maya, he develops the false ego that he can enjoy material sense gratification, and then the five types of ignorance – tamah (not knowing anything about the spirit soul), moha (the illusion of the bodily concept of life), maha-moha (madness for material enjoyment), tamisra (forgetfulness of one’s constitutional position due to anger or envy) and andha-tamisra (considering death to be the ultimate end) – cover his pure, atomic nature. Our liberation or subjugation simply depends on whether we use our minute independence properly, or misuse it.
Vrajanatha: Krsna is karunamaya (full of mercy), so why did He make the jiva so weak that he became entangled in maya?
Babaji: It is true that Krsna is karunamaya, overflowing with mercy, however, He is also lilamaya, overflowing with desire to perform pastimes. Desiring various pastimes to be enacted in different situations, Sri Krsna made the jiva’s eligable for all conditions, from the marginal state to the highest state of mahabhava. And to facilitate the jiva’s progressing practically and steadfastly towards becoming qualified for Krsna’s service, He has also created the lower levels of material existence, beginning from the lowest inert matter up to ahankara, which are the cause of unlimited obstruction in attaining paramananda. Having fallen from their constitutional position, the jivas who are entangled in maya are indifferent to Krsna and engrossed in personal sense gratification.
However, Sri Krsna is the reservoir of mercy. The more the jiva becomes fallen, the more Krsna provides him with opportunities to attain the highest spiritual perfection. He brings this about by appearing before him along with His spiritual dhama and His eternal associates. Those jivas who take advantage of this merciful opportunity and sincerely endeavor to attain the higher position gradually reach the spiritual world and attain a state similar to that of Sri Hari’s eternal associates.
Vrajanatha: Why must the jivas suffer for the sake of Bhagavan’s pastimes?
Babaji: The jivas possess some independence. This is actually a sign of Bhagavan’s special mercy upon them. Inert objects are very insignificant and worthless because they have no such independent desire. The jiva has attained sovereignty of the inert world only because of his independent desire. Misery and happiness are conditions of the mind. Thus what we may consider misery is happiness for one engrossed in it.
Since all varieties of material sense gratification finally result in nothing but misery, a materialistic person only achieves suffering. When that suffering becomes excessive, it gives rise to a search for happiness. From that desire, discrimination arises, and from discrimination, the tendency for inquiry is born. As a result of this, one attains sat-sanga (the association of saintly people), whereupon sraddha develops. When sraddha is born, the jiva ascends to a higher stage, namely the path of bhakti.
Gold is purified by heating and hammering. Being indifferent to Krsna, the jiva has become impure through engaging in mundane sense gratification. Therefore, he must be purified by being beaten with the hammers of misery on the anvil of this material world. By this process, the misery of the jivas averse to Krsna finally culminates in happiness. Suffering is therefore just a sign of Bhagavan’s mercy. That is why far sighted people see the suffering of jivas in Krsna’s pastimes as auspicious though the near sighted can only see it as an inauspicious source of misery.
Vrajanatha: The jiva’s suffering in his conditioned state is ultimately auspicious, but in the present state it is very painful. Since Krsna is omnipotent, couldn’t He think of a less troublesome path?
Babaji: Krsna’s lila is extremely wonderful and of many varieties; this is also one of them. If Bhagavan is independent and almighty, and performs all kinds of pastimes, why should this be the only pastime that He neglects? No pastime can be rejected if there is to be full variety. Besides, the participants in other types of pastimes also must accept some sort of suffering. Sri Krsna is the enjoyer (purusa) and the active agent (karta). All ingredients and paraphernalia are controlled by
His desire and subject to His activities. It is natural to experience some suffering when one is controlled by the desire of the agent. However, if that suffering brings pleasure in the end, it is not true suffering. How can you call it suffering? The so- called suffering that one undergoes in order to nourish and support Krsna’s pastimes is actually a source of delight. The jiva’s independent desire has caused him to abandon the pleasure of serving Krsna, and instead accept suffering in maya.This is the jiva’s fault, not Krsna’s.
Vrajanatha: What harm would there have been if the jiva had not been given independent desire? Krsna is omniscient, and He gave this independence to the jivas, even though He knew that they would suffer on account of it, so isn’t He responsible for the jiva’s suffering?
Babaji: Independence is a precious jewel, in the absence of which inert objects are insignificant and worthless. If the jiva had not received independence, he would also have become as insignificant and worthless as the material objects. The jiva is an atomic, spiritual entity, so he must certainly have all the qualities of spiritual objects. The only difference is that Bhagavan, who is the complete spiritual object, possesses all these qualities in full, whereas the jiva only has them to a very minute degree. Independence is a distinctive quality of the spiritual object, and an object’s inherent quality cannot be separated from the object itself. Consequently, the jiva also has this quality of independence, but only to a very minute degree, because he is atomic. It is only because of this independence that the jiva is the supreme object in the material world, and the lord of creation.
The independent jiva is a beloved servant of Krsna, and thus Krsna is kind and compassionate towards him. Seeing the misfortune of the jiva, as he misuses his independence and becomes attached to maya, He chases after him, weeping and
weeping, and appears in the material world to deliver him. Sri Krsna, the ocean of compassion, His heart melting with mercy for the jivas, manifests His acintya-lila in the material world, thinking that His appearance will enable the jiva to see His nectarean pastimes.
However, the jiva does not understand the truth about Krsna’s pastimes, even after being showered by so much mercy, so Krsna then descends in Sri Navadvipa in the form of guru. He personally describes the supreme process of
chanting His name, form, qualities and pastimes, and personally instructs and inspires the jivas to take to this path by practicing it Himself. Baba, how can you accuse Krsna of being at fault in any way when He is so merciful? His mercy is unlimited, but our misfortune is lamentable.
Vrajanatha: Is maya-sakti the cause of our misfortune then? Would the jivas have had to suffer like this if the omnipotent and omniscient Sri Krsna had kept maya away from them?
Babaji: Maya is a reflected transformation of Krsna’s internal potency, svarupa-sakti, and it is like a fiery furnace where the jivas who are not qualified for Krsna’s seva are chastized and made fit for the spiritual world. Maya is Krsna’s maidservant. In order to purify the jivas who have turned against Krsna, she punishes them, gives appropriate therapy, and purifies them. The infinitesimal jiva has forgotten that he is an eternal servant of Krsna, and for this offense, maya, taking the form of a witch (pisaci), punishes him. This material world is like a jail, and maya is the jailer who imprisons the estranged jivas and punishes them. A king constructs a prison for the benefit of his subjects, and in the same way, Bhagavan has shown His immense mercy towards the jivas by making this prison-like material world and appointing maya as its custodian.
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